Eastern Begins Conference Play with a Pair of Matches this Weekend

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - After finishing the 15-match non-conference schedule, the Eastern Michigan University volleyball team will start its road to the 2013 Mid-American Conference Tournament. The Eagles (10-5) begin MAC play this weekend, hosting a pair of conference tilts at the Convocation Center.

The Green and White will take on Ball State University in the first league match of the season Friday, Sept. 27, at the Convocation Center. The Cardinals (12-3) boast the best record in the MAC West Division when they come to Ypsilanti for a 7 p.m. start time. Following their match with Ball State, the Eagles will welcome the University of Toledo's squad into the Convocation Center for a 7 p.m. matchup. The Rockets (7-6) will take on EMU Saturday, Sept. 28, with first serve scheduled for 7 p.m.

FOR THE 34TH TIME: Eastern Michigan has been a member of the Mid-American Conference for 33 years. The 2013 conference slate will serve as EMU's 34th season as a member of the MAC, including the Eagles' first place MAC West finish in 2005, when they totaled a 14-2 record.

ALL-TIME AGAINST THE OPPONENTS: EMU has played in 124 matches combined against this week's opponents.

EMU's first foe of this week, Ball State, has been an Eastern Michigan opponent 64 times prior to Friday night's matchup. The Cardinals hold a 42-22 edge over the Eagles. Eastern split its two matches with BSU last season. The Green and White first knocked off the Cardinals on the road, Oct. 6, 2012, in four sets, before falling in three at home, Nov. 9, 2012.

EMU has seen Toledo 60 times previously, with Saturday becoming the 61st meeting between the two. Eastern owns the all-time series, 48-12. In 2012, The Eagles knocked off the Rockets in five sets on two different occasions. The Eagles defeated Toledo on both Oct. 5 and Nov. 10, 2012.

REVERSING THE TREND: The EMU volleyball team had lost seven straight matches against IPFW heading into last Tuesday's Sept. 17 matchup. Eastern not only turned things around against the Mastodons but knocked off the formindable squad very easily. The Eagles topped the IPFW in three sets, 25-21, 25-20 and 25-16.

CRAWSHAW AND SHORT EARN ALL-TOURNAMENT HONORS: Eastern Michigan had a solid showing in the 2013 Spartan Invitational, Sept. 21-22. The Eagles went 2-1 with the only loss coming to the No. 14-ranked Michigan State University Spartans Friday, Sept. 20. After stellar play throughout the weekend, both Megan Crawshaw and Erin Short were named to the Spartan Invite's All-Tournament Team.

Crawshaw earned her honors after posting a .370 attack percentage throughout the three matches of the tournament. The junior had a .529 hitting percentage Saturday, Sept. 21, with 10 kills against Cincinnati. Overall on the weekend, the Mattawan, Mich. native notched 2.2 kills, 1.3 blocks and 2.85 points per set.

Short was named to the team after totaling 23 kills and a .333 attack percentage at the invitational. The senior averaged 2.3 kills, 0.3 assists, 0.7 digs, 2.8 points and a block per frame through the Eagles' three matches in East Lansing.

BRINER'S BIG DAY: Junior transfer Jill Briner stole the show for the Eagles offensively against Duquesne, Sept. 21. The Oak Park, Ill. native picked up career-highs in kills (12) and assists (26). The setter/outside hitter combo had a .500 hitting percentage, going 12-for-24 in her attempts without making an error, along with two service aces in the match. Briner was also strong at the net defensively, picking up four block assists.

IN THE NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT: The Eagles are not only leading the MAC in a few categories, but they are ranked in the top-50 nationally in a pair of them as well. EMU is ranked 20th overall in aces per set at 1.79, while it is 40th overall in digs per set with 16.05.

LEADING THE LEAGUE, AS USUAL: Over the last few years, EMU has been near the top of the Mid-American Conference in digs and this season is no different. The Eagles are currently leading the league in total digs with 899. The next closest is Northern Illinois who has notched just 829 in two less sets, while the Green and White is currently posting 16.95 digs per set and Ball State is second in that category with over one and a half digs less per game, 15.38.

Corynne Smith is third in the conference with five digs per set, but is leading the conference in overall digs. She has totaled 262 digs in 56 sets, while the leaders in the conference Kelly Svoboda (Buffalo) and Jenna Coates (Central Michigan), are averaging 5.79 and 5.23 digs, repsectively.

SERVING UP VICTORY: After finishing last season as the eighth best serving team in the Mid-American Conference, the Eagles have made themselves known as a force from behind the service line. The Green and White is leading the conference in service aces, posting 100 so far this season. Ball State ranks second in overall aces at 74. EMU is averaging 1.79 aces per set which is 0.19 more than the next closest as Buffalo averages 1.60 per game.

Individually, Natalie Folk and Jill Briner have each looked stellar serving for the Eagles. Folk is ranked sixth in the conference, posting 0.33 aces per set, while Briner is tied for eighth overall in the MAC notching 0.30 aces per frame.

ANOTHER FAMILY AFFAIR IN 2013: Eastern Michigan senior, Paige Roback, faced off with a family member for the first time in her career when the Eagles' took on IPFW, Sept. 17. Roback's cousin, Payton Bowyer, is a freshman on the Mastodons' squad. Both Roback and Bowyer were each members of Toledo's Notre Dame Academy Eagles in high school. The Eagles' senior came out victorious in her only match against her cousin when Eastern knocked off IPFW in straight sets.

EASTERN SWEEPS 2013 BROWN INVITATIONAL: The Eagles traveled to Providence, R.I. and swept the competition to become champions of the tournament. EMU not only swept the tournament but did not lose a set in its three matches.

SHORT EARNS FIRST PLAYER OF THE WEEK NOD OF HER CAREER: Eastern Michigan University volleyball senior Erin Short was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Offensive Player of the Week, the conference office announced Monday, Sept. 16. This is the first time Short was honored by the MAC since her freshman season when she was named to the All-MAC Freshman Team.

Short led the Eagles to their first undefeated week as EMU went 4-0 without dropping a set in any of the four matches. The Orrville, Ohio native led Eastern's offense by averaging 2.58 kills per set, while posting a .351 attack percentage. Short had just five attack errors throughout the entire four matches, including two matches where she did not make a single error in 15 and 20 attack attempts.

The senior was not only an offensive force throughout the week, but was dominant defensively as well. Short had 12 total blocks including two solo blocks and 10 assists. She averaged a team-best 3.17 points per set to lead the Eagles in their perfect week.

FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2011: Eastern won five-straight matches without losing a single set over a five match span, Sept. 10-17. It was the first time since the 2010 season that Eastern won five consecutive matches in three sets. The last time won five matches in a row without losing a set was from Aug. 28-Sept. 10. The Eagles won seven-straight without dropping a set, before falling to Clemson, Sept. 11, at the 2010 Michigan State Invitational, where EMU eventually knocked off the host school, MSU, to win the tournament.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

Eastern Begins Conference Play with a Pair of Matches this Weekend

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